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As readers, writers, and literature lovers, we have all had our lit-geek moments, whether it’s naming our dog after the protagonist in our favorite book or laughing at an obscure authorial reference in a movie. Some of the most rewarding moments, however, occur when we stumble across literature in decidedly non-literary places. The following is a random, by no means definitive, list of examples.

1) As I Lay Dying
This one’s a freebie. Yep, it’s a band. And a William Faulkner novel.

2) Myths of the Near Future
It’s a short story collection by J.G. Ballard, but it’s also the debut album name of the indie British band, Klaxons, as listed in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. Bonus points: Track 1 of the album, “Atlantis to Interzone,” refers to both Atlantis, the mythical lost city, and Interzone, a short story collection by William S. Burroughs, while Track 7, “Gravity’s Rainbow,” is named after Thomas Pynchon’s postmodern novel of the same name.

3) Lorna Doone
An amazingly tasty, buttery shortbread cookie by Nabisco. Also a 1869 novel by Richard Doddridge Blackmore. The book’s full title is Lorna Doone: A Romance of Exmoor. Who would have known?

4) Taylor Swift’s Love Story
Couldn’t resist this one. Sure, the whole song draws unabashed comparisons to William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, but did anyone else notice the subtle, one-time reference to Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter? “Cause you were Romeo, I was a scarlet letter/And my daddy said stay away from Juliet”… Sorry for getting it stuck in your head.

5) The Beatles’ I Am the Walrus
The aforementioned walrus in this brilliant, famous, clearly acid-inspired song is a reference to the walrus in Lewis Carroll’s book Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There? Apparently, John Lennon didn’t realize that the walrus was a bad guy at the time, and he thought to himself, “Oh, shit, I picked the wrong guy. I should have said ‘I am the carpenter.’” Beatles fans around the world thank Lennon for his mistake.

6) Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
While we’re on the subject of Lewis Carroll, it seems fitting to mention that Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland have been influential enough to warrant a Wikipedia page entitled Works based on Alice in Wonderland. From a neurological condition called “Alice in Wonderland Syndrome” to Salvador Dalí’s illustrations based on Alice in Wonderland to Gwen Stefani’s Alice-inspired video for “What You Waiting For?” the unexpected references are endless.

Lit-geek-out and share your literary references in non-literary places with us and the world by leaving a comment or tweeting @blackclockmag.

by Chrysanthe Tan
a singer-songwriter, actor, violinist, poet, Pisces, and Star Wars enthusiast

frieze Magazine’s “Ideal Syllabus” Series

On the prowl for new reads, I discovered a gold mine of literary insight in an unlikely place—in an art magazine. To be fair, frieze Magazine is known to be on the cutting edge of arts and culture, and I often look their way for some of the most provoking and relevant writing being published in contemporary periodicals, critical or not, “art-genre” or not. Their “Ideal Syllabus” series is, in their words, an ongoing series that “asks an artist, curator or writer to list the books that have influenced them.” Contributors include writer and academic Maria Fusco, visual artist Carol Bove, and painter Monika Baer, to name a few. Though at first expecting to see manifestos, philosophy, or other canonized essays (which indeed populate several if not many of the subjects’ lists), I perked up when I came to Tom McCarthy’s list of books—a bounty of fiction.

McCarthy, whose artistic pursuits include the spearheading of an avant-garde organization and a novel (the highly touted Remainder) and a critical study of the work of Hergé, shows a compelling appreciation for both narrative classicism and innovation, with his colorful—dare I say good humored?—sequencing of titles. Praise for Maurice Sendak’s Where the Wild Things Are is sandwiched in between Conrad’s Heart of Darkness and Joyce’s Finnegans Wake. The Adventures of Tintin made the list, as did Pynchon’s chef d’oeuvre. He hails The Sound and the Fury as the “single best novel ever written.” And although I don’t share McCarthy’s enthusiasm for all of his picks, I was absolutely inspired to investigate those that were foreign to me⎯most notably, Alain Robbe-Grillet’s The Voyeur.

You can find the article series in print and online at www.frieze.com/magazine.

by Mallory Farrugia
a writer and freelance editor living in Venice, CA

Posts Tagged ‘Outside’—

Hey, this cookie is a book!

frieze Magazine’s “Ideal Syllabus” Series

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